Day 8 To Sibenik And Zadar

We left Spit this morning for our 2 tours of the day as we headed to Zadar where we will be spending the night. Sibenik is another one of those little settlements with a long history. We did stop in a square to view one of those old churches that has some amazing features. This church was completely built of stone without the use of any wood to hold it together. One feature on the outside were “heads” of people the sculpture/designer knew. Every one had a different expression which reflected something of their personality. It was an impressive place. St James Cathedral showed incredible craftsmanship.

The interior was impressive enough but the baptistery was something to see. We descended a small staircase. The baptismal fount was not overly large in the small space. The carvings of the angels and the way the natural light filtered in showed that the builder had taken great pains in the design. After a short time to walk around we headed to Zadar. Zadar is a large city and port. Our destination was the old city within the walls. As was expected there were many shops. We were given some time to explore.

A large bell tower of the cathedral was built in the 15th century and has been added to over the centuries . It is about 160 feet high and quite impressive. For a few euros we could walk to the top. The views of the city were quite impressive! The area near the shoreline had been settled by the Romans and we toured the remains of the Roman settlement. The foundations of the “market shops” could easily be seen. A walk along the waterfront brought us to the “sea pipe organ”. A series of openings were made at the low tide level.

Small openings were left to the walkway above. As the waves roll in air if forced upward to the small openings making a rushing whistling sound. Hence the organ sound. After a long day of sightseeing we were glad to head to the hotel and dinner.

Day 7 Touring Diocletien Palace And Tozeur

Today we had 2 separate tours. Our morning tour took us back the the centre of the city to visit the Diocletien Palace. He was the Roman emperor in the 2nd century. We have seen many Roman ruins over the years but this was quite different because it was a whole palace and defensive position all in one. The surface portion of the palace was destroyed and has been completely built with “modern” buildings built on the ruins of the palace. A few things do remain of the original structure. The surrounding wall and 4 main gates are still intact. We walked the entire fortification which not only was a palace but a town with housing for the Roman guards, workers, etc.

The part that was most impressive was the underground or foundation of the palace. All the rubble from over the years had been dumped into that area which has now been excavated. The foundations were enormous. The photo gives you a limited idea of the scope of these rooms. It was used in roman times to store the goods that were brought in by sea. Originally one side of the fortification was along the sea wall. Today that original area had been filled in. It now a very wide promenade. You do get an idea of how large the upper rooms were as the “basement” walls supported the walls of the upper buildings. The workmanship and building techniques are really on display.

The surface area of the palace although it has been rebuilt over the centuries still has a certian ancient feel to it. About 3000 people still live inside this palace but it is filled with all types of shops, hotel rooms, restaurants etc. However parts of the original temples can be seen. You do get a good impression of the entire complex. All 4 main gates are still intact so the entire palace can be entered from one of the 4 gates. The east west gates lead to a road that intersects the north south road. We did have some free time to walk around so we wandered a bit, found a gelato shop and then just sat and watch the boats in the harbour until we left.

After returning to the hotel for a short break we were off to Tozeur. It is a small outlying settlement from Spit. As everything along this coast, it has a long history of Roman, Venetian and Ottoman settlement. It guards the entrance to Spit. It reminded us of a medina that we saw in Tunisia. There were small shops, churches, narrow streets and plenty of restaurants of all kinds. It was filled with tourist from the smaller tour boats. There were were at least 3 alongside. The town is close to the airport and it is a perfect jumping off point for cruise ships that are going to visit the small ports along the coast. Dinner tonight was in one of the many restaurants in the area. It had good food and service. We are on the move north tomorrow.

From Mostar to Spit

Today was moving day! We had to drive about 200 km so we had a leisurely morning leaving around 10 am. When we left the hotel we passed a building that I assumed had not been repaired after the war. The roof was blown off and the walls had lots of marks that must have been bullet holes. I wondered if this had been the location of a “sniper” with the holes represented people firing back?

We had to go through the entering the EU again with the requisite immigration proceedings. However somehow the bus driver found a friendly agent (I think he told them something about old people not being able to walk). So they came aboard with a hand held passport scanned and camera and did the checking right at out seat. It was very convenient but we did have to wait a bit. Once we cleared that we headed to a local “winery” for a tasting and snacks. At the Konoba Jokan we had welcoming drink. Once seated there was fresh bread, cheese, prosciutto (Croatia style) cut thicker than we usually get it and a tasting of white and red wine. They also had deep fried dough balls that reminded me of apple fritters from our family.

We drove to Spit which is the second largest city in Croatia. We managed a glimpse of a castle where some filming for Game Of Thrones was done. We finally stopped at the Amphora hotel which is located right on the ocean. Very Nice!

Dinner tonight was at a local restaurant where we had choices of what to eat from the platters set on the table. The Chop and Grill (?) is a popular eatery in the core area. They served everything on a platter. We had 5 (?) appetizers enough for the 4 at the table. The main plate had chicken, lamb and 4 beef tenderloin. There was more that enough to eat then came the dessert platter. Enough said. The rain kept coming but hopefully it will be done by tomorrow when we are back to walking tours.

Travel to Mostar, Bosnia

Today was a travel day to Mostar. Out by 8 for a 2 hour drive. We are travelling

north for the rest of the trip. The drive along the coast provided good views of the many islands that are along the Dalmatian coast. We did see the prime oyster grown area. There were many buoyed beds in the bays.

Since we were crossing into Bosnia Herzegovina a non EU country, we needed to go through the leaving the EU area procedure. The Bosnia Herzegovina border check point was basically in the same building. Scanned passports, photo and then scan passport stamp the old fashion way and off we went. We crossed through the mountains and the karst topography area to our lunch spot. The “complex” had a very large outdoor restaurant. There we 5 or 6 (?) tour busses already there. The specialty is trout which they farm right where the large spring discharges into the river. The flow was pretty strong. We saw buildings with “slate” roofs something we had never seen before. We crossed the picturesque bridge, had a nice salad, local wine and 2 10”(?) trout with the heads still attached. Very tasty. The meal also had potatoes and spinach. That is the second time that spinach was the vegetable.

After lunch we made the short drive to Mostar which was our stopping place for the night. A local guide met us and walked us through the old quarter. She detailed the war which split the city. She indicated that during the conflict snipers would fire on the population. We crossed the old bridge (destroyed and rebuilt) into the Turkish section which is the oldest part of the city. Streets were cobblestone with many souvenir shops. The tour including a visit of an original Turkish home and the Mosque. We arrived at the hotel where we had a bit of a rest.

One of the things mentioned was that the unemployment rate in the city is 50% and people are in need. It was depressing to see young girls (10 years old ?) begging with signs asking for money. Women with young babies asking for milk money. In fact one women was nursing a baby!

Montenegro A Border Crossing and Rain Torrents

Today was a real adventure! We headed out at 8:00 this morning on the optional tour to Montenegro. Everything was going along just fine until we stopped at the border. The first check point was the Croatia exit. With the new immigration system we had to “leave” the EU. Everyone needed to scan their passport and have their picture taken again. The 15 Canadians finished easily. The problem was the bus and the operator. Our original transportation (mini bus) was in an accident the night before and was not available. There was along delay in the release of the bus. It was finally resolved with the payment of a fine. The crossing into Montenegro went faster. It was finally resolved 2.5 hours after we first arrived there. Needless to say we missed parts of the tour because of the shortened time available. We picked up our new guide and spent the next few hours touring the Kotor area.

Kotor is at the end of a very extensive “fiord”. The walls of the fiord were not steep but the water area was very extensive. There were 3 cruise ships anchored in the city so again just like yesterday it was overrun by visitors. The Viking ship was the same one that we saw yesterday. The tour included a boat ride to an island church and then a walk along the city streets. Because of the border delay we needed to get to our lunch location quickly. After lunch we had a mini look at the older parts of the city and our guide did an excellent job of pointing out the various buildings.

The only drawback other than the border delay was the very heavy downpours that continued all day. Some of the storms were extremely heavy! We managed and headed back to Dubrovnik. This time there was only a minimal delay at the border as we were scanned fingerprinted and photoed again as we entered the EU. Another adventure in the books. We are on the move north tomorrow.

Dubrovnik City Walls and A Small Town

Today was a full morning boat ride and tour of the walled city of Dubrovnik.

Our guide “Tom” is excellent with his detailed knowledge of the history and background information about the city, art works, churches, etc. The morning started with a boat ride from the inner arm of the water around to the seaward side. There were 2 passenger ships in today one carnival and a viking. Needless to say the old city was wall to wall with tours ship tours! The view from the sea gave a very good perspective of what an invader might have to face if attacking the area. Interesting enough the city was attacked during the Bosnian war and we did see some a shell hole in the wall in one of the buildings.

All of the city has been rebuilt from a very early (centuries ago) earthquake and fire and the last war damage. The city has a relatively “new” feeling. We did have a very good look at the churches and government buildings. We were in the Franciscan Monastery which houses Europe’s oldest apothecary. There was a book on display that had formulas for making medicines from plants. It was 500 plus years old.

We did have a few hours free time in the afternoon. It was an opportunity to pay for our optional tour for tomorrow. Later we travel by coach to the region of Konavle with a stop at the little mountain village of Gruda to see the mills and enjoy a tasting of local ham, cheese and grappa. This was a very interesting stop to actually see an old small working a corn/wheat grinning mill. There use to be 5 mills along this small stream but only 2 are still “operational”. The second mill was to “fool” the cloth which I think means to soften it. A very interesting demo with a local drink (or 2).

From there we proceeded to a “farm house” for our welcome dinner hosted in a local family. It was a great location. Local musicians entertained us while we had more wine, dinner and dessert. By 9 when we got back to the hotel we had had a full day. Tomorrow is the optional side trip to Montenegro.

TRAVEL DAY AND ARRIVAL CROATIA So after being on the road for 4 days we are finally settled into the Royal Ariston hotel in Dubrovnik. W e started travelling on Saturday morning. After trying travel to Toronto by train last year we did the same this year. Business class made the trip very relaxing as opposed to driving. We visited with our family for 3 days we were ready for the long haul. We arrived at Pearson 1 for the first leg of the trip to Amsterdam by KLM. It left at 4:45. Our Tour Manager Daisy met us and we quickly had our tickets, luggage tags and were through security. We managed to get 2 seats together, no small feat when our last names are spelled slightly different. (Don't ask!) 16 of us boarded the plane and the last person met us in Europe. We arrived around midnight (6am local time). Europe now has a new passport control system much like arriving in Canada. You scan you passport your photo is taken. Europe wants finger prints. Mine scanned OK (Judy's did not) at which point you need to go into a secondary line to see an agent. I headed for the automated line where they could not verify my information and I was directed to the agent line. The easy go line had nobody in it. We had been warned by Daisy to expect this! That went quickly. Waited until 10:30 for the next leg to Croatia and finally arrived in Dubrovnik. Our bus was waiting. We will have the same bus driver and guide for the entire trip with other local guides as needed. Check in went smoothly.

We had time to relax for a few hours. Needless to say we were tired by the time dinner was served around 6:30 local time. Staying 3 nights meant a big unpack getting our clothes ready for the next few days. After some searching we found everything we needed. There are 17 people on the tour and most seem to be fit enough for the activities planned. There are 5 couples and 7 independent women. Most are from Ontario. So everything starts tomorrow with a full day of touring!

Croatia Slovenia & Venice Croatia is an area that we have wanted to visit for a long time having heard about it from many travelling friends. None of our many cruises stopped in the area. So this year we decided to finally see this part of the world. After having travelled with Senior Discovery Tours the last 2 years we decided to travel with them again. We enjoyed our trips to Sicily and Tunisia. They are a one stop company that provides a complete package planned. The part that was and is most appealing is that the price they quote is all in – air fare, transfers, meals, all tips, tours, taxes, etc. One price done! The Croatia trip is 15 days long starting and ending with flights from Toronto.

This land tour concentrates on Croatia but we also visit Slovenia, have an opportunity to take a side trip to Montenegro; before finally ending up the trip with a short visit to Venice. Although we will be moving around the country, we will stay at least 2 days in every hotel. We fly into Dubrovnik to start the tour before going on to Mostar, Split, Zadar Zagreb Ljubljana and finally Venice. We are looking forward to world heritage sites, snow capped peaks, lakes and lush valleys before going underground to the impressive cave system and finally another visit to the always impressive Venice. It should be fun. In Toronto we will meet up with Daisy the tour manager. She was the manager on our last trip to Tunisia. We fly out on Monday afternoon October 5th to Amsterdam on KLM airlines before our second leg into Dubrovnik. We will retrace the flights from Venice on October 19. Watch for posts every day.

Day 16 Returning To Canada

Midnight Tunisian time (6 pm Ontario) was a bit early for a wake up call but that was required to get us to the airport to start back to Canada. Before we leave Tunisia, there area a few observations and comments to share. One thing was the road system. There are modern expressways as well as paved secondary streets. Only in the south in the Atlas mountains and salt lakes did the going get a bit rough. There are very few stop signs except for the largest town where you find the ever present traffic lights. However they do make extensive use of traffic circles which work just fine! Tunisia is a wonderful friendly country that are trying to build up the tourist industry. Having visited many UNSESCO sites with many ancient cultures on display they do have much to offer. Beautiful coastlines, endless olive groves, hidden oasis, salt lakes sand dunes , etc. add to the appeal of Tunisia. Many of the towns have medinas – old fortified or walled areas where people work and live. Every day brought another spectacular discovery. The friendly people and the endless number of sellers (not really pushy) of pottery, leather goods, camel skin shoes, as well as the standard key chains and fridge magnets add to the charm. An outstanding guide and tour director made this trip very enjoyable. Visit Tunisia if the opportunity arises. A 2.5 hour flight got us to Paris airport, a 5 hour wait and an 8 hour flight ended this adventure!

Day 15 Carthage

Today was our last day in Tunisia. We did have another full day starting at 9 and ending just after 6. This morning included a tour of the capital city Tunis. We started at the Bardo Museum. It is housed in a former palace.

It has one of the finest collections of Mosaics in the world. There are close to 200 mosaics plus other relics from all the ancient lands in Tunisia. Some of the mosaics were so large that it is hard to explain. The designs are very intricate. They are not just pieces of stone cemented together but rather whole stories. They went on and on forever. Every room was more outstanding than the last. How they removed them and then reconstructed the entire piece was amazing.

We did come across the 2 young girls who were friendly with people in our group. Everyone was taking pictures of them but I liked the East meet west as shown in the photo. That is a contrast that we constantly encountered. We only saw a few women with the full burka, many more with just the scarf and the rest in what you world expect to see in Canada. After lunch in a seaside restaurant, we headed to Carthage. We were well aware of the Punic Wars and the role that Hannibal and the elephants played.

The city that was destroyed by the Romans had 400,000 people living there at one time. The cistern was huge. Much of the ruined city is still buried with houses constructed on top. Unlike the other sites we have see, it was a bit “disjointed?” It was the site if the second largest Roman baths in the world. The layout was similar to what we say the other day.

Finally we made a stop at the resort town of Sidi Bou Said which overlooks the turquoise gulf: crowded, many souvenir shops, etc. The town was the main attraction. However the sunset although not the greatest was very nice. Tomorrow we leave for the airport at 2 am. Breakfast at 1am. We will be up about 24 hours by the time we land! It has been an amazing and exhausting trip but well worth it.

Day 14 Dougga To Tunis A Long Hard

After such a nice day yesterday today was another one of those long hard days with lots of kilometres to be covered. Early wake up call and then on the bus and on the road by 7 am. We had a 3 hour bus ride to our first stop. We were headed back west towards the Atlas mountains to a place called Dougga. It is about 550 meters above sea level. It is another Roman site but this one is the most impressive one we have ever seen.

It was more than just foundations, walls, etc. The temples were “completely” rebuilt. The roads, the baths, the houses etc were all very impressive. It is impossible to describe it. There was an amphitheatre, Roman baths where you could see all the rooms – cold, hot, etc. The heating system for the hot air was clearly visible, etc. We even saw the house of ill repute complete with public toilets. We had seen something similar in Ephesus. The main roads still bore the marks that the chariots made in the “pavement”. The forum and the markets were in a remarkable state.

All of the town was situated on a mountainside with a commanding view of the valley far below. It even had a mosque that was built on the site long after it had been abandoned by the Romans. In all quite the site. By the time we finished there it was past 1 and we headed for lunch at the only place in town. This site is a major tourist attraction and this place does a big tour bus business. There were 4 buses of various sizes in the parking lot. They served a chicken or wild boar meal. The boar is quite a tasty meat. We headed for Tunis about 2.5 hours away. The tour guide decided to take us into the city to see the capital buildings and the largest Medina in Tunisia. This one is a world heritage site. It really was quite impressive. About 100,000 people live in this walled area and where we walked there were many many shops selling all different types of goods. There were plenty of gold and silver places. It was impressive but it had been a long day.

Once outside the Medina we walked along the avenue built by the French who ruled the country in the 19th century. It reminded us of the main streets of Paris. He did show us a catholic church called St Vincent De Paul. It is a typical cathedral looking structure. We then headed to our hotel which is located outside Tunis in a place called Gammarth. The streets were congested early evening traffic and we did not get to the hotel until shortly before 7. As I said a very long hard day! Final tour day tomorrow! It feels like we are running a marathon.

Day 13 A Relaxing Day

Today was a stay around the hotel and just catch up on a few things. It seems every day we find something new at the buffet. It goes on forever and of course it changes every meal. We found the fresh squeezed OJ station today. It was out by the pool! Now that we will leaving early tomorrow we seems to have it figured out. We decided on a nice walk along the beach to the town and the harbour district. There was much more to see. We missed it the other day when we were there. We are leaving tomorrow morning so we took part of the day to pack out bags once again and just have a relaxing day. Always interesting. There was an optional activity but we decided to skip it. It was a 2 hour sail on a pirate ship. They went out just off shore and you could snorkel if you had equipment, fish or just hang around. Somebody who had been on it before gave us an idea about it. I think about half our group passed on the optional excursion. We had a line dance class this afternoon. Simple songs for people who had never even tired to dance before. It was as you would expect. We had about about 15. No men tried to dance. Everyone stayed until the end which was unexpected! It was a good way to spend a bit of time. The hotel did set up the sound system as well as a hand held mike. We danced 4 songs in the hour. After we did take a dip in the pool. Then it was back to the room. After 4 days here we needed to repack everything.

We had a wonderful time at dinner. Everyone stayed until the lights went out for a second. Good way to get everyone out! They have entertainment every evening but by the time it starts only a few people stay to attend. We leave at 7 tomorrow to head north to the capital Tunis for our last 2 days..

Day 12 Monastir

Another day of touring all day but at least tomorrow we have a off day. We decided not to go on an optional pirate ship ride for 2 hours tomorrow. We heard from someone who had gone it before said it was worse than it sounds. A number of others opted out as well. The day started slow as we went to the coastal city of Monastir and visited the Mausoleum of Habib Bourguiba the Tunisian father of Independence. It was a long ride to this location. It was interesting enough but we had never heard of this person so the importance may have been lost on us. We were given some free time and we chose to visit the old fort. The most interesting part was the watch tower which we headed for immediately. Of course the sight from the high elevation made the stop worth the climbing effort.

Next we headed to the city of Soussse and visited the Archaeological Museum in an old fortress. This was an amazing place. It holds items from North Africa dating as far back as the 7th century BC. The mosaics were taken from Roman towns and other places were incredible. The collection included the head of Meddua and the Face of Oceanud. The hours (days, years) that must have gone into producing them is beyond knowing. We have seem mosaics before but nothing compared to the size and detail of these. It was hard to capture the detail in these mosaics in a single photograph. Lunch was at a local restaurant and was absolutely delicious. Fish (the whole fish) like we had in the past or beef served with a mushroom sauce. We have not seen beef like that even in these resorts. It was definitely the best meal we have had outside the resorts.

Another Medina. We have seen a number of these on this trip. This one was filled with shops selling just about anything. The gold shops were very nice, brightly lit and clean looking. Vegetable stalls, a small fish market (Nothing like Busan Korea) meat shops, clothing, tons of shoe vendors, etc. Then of course all the souvenir shops with the usual knock offs! By this time the group had had it and we did eventually head back to the Palace. Our trip is coming to an end but we certainly have had a real education about this Arab country. I suspect that we will be hearing more about Tunisia as a tourist destination inn the future.

Day 11 Remembrance Day At The Marhaba Palace

Today was one of those days on the trip that was a day at leisure. As such we waited a bit before going down to breakfast. Like all the buffets, there are too many choices. They will make fried eggs, omelettes, fresh crepes etc while you wait! The big event this morning was a planned Remembrance Day service that we had asked to be held. There are a few veterans on the trip. A private room was arranged and one of our group - June took the lead with a planned program. A few of us spoke briefly and then at exactly 11 am we had a moment of silence. Before that we had the reading of In Flanders Field and other appropriate poems and short prayers. Then we all joined hands and sang Oh Canada. Someone brought a few bottles of wine and we had “up spirits” much like they do in the Legions on this day. In all it was a very appropriate ceremony.

Afterwards we walked along the beach. The sand is very fine and almost impossible to walk on. We stayed near the shoreline! We did get to the marina where we found many restaurants and of course the ever present shops selling the same goods. It was a good way to spend a few hours. A light lunch followed when we got back late to the resort. No problem today as they were still making fresh fried shrimp (while we waited). We did manage to eat enough!! This resort is full so we are allotted a 7:45 dinner start time with assigned or reserved tables. The group as a whole get along very well. It is impossible to get to know everyone but you sit down and start to chat and time flies. This is what happens after our late dinners.

Later in the afternoon we went by bus to a real mall to get a sense of how people in this large city (Sousse) actually shop. The mall was as modern as we have in Canada. Some of the stores have names that are similar to ours. The roadside stalls that were in every small village as we headed north the last few days were gone. No tables selling vegetables, fruit and used clothing. The stores are well lit with bright displays. They have a super store that sells everything from groceries to clothing but much larger than what we know. The food court has a Burger King and a KFC. One thing we noticed was that many young women were not wearing the traditional head scarf. The men (boys) were not wearing hats as we would see in our stores. The other thing noted was that we could not find any place that where you could have a beer. We tried but no luck. Touring tomorrow!

Day 10 A Mosque Vist and a Resort Hotel in Kairouan

Today was the start of a few days of less hectic activities. Leaving time was a reasonable 9 but we were up early and ready to go. There were 4 things on the agenda today. The first place (cisterns) was cancelled because the site is under renovations for the next 2 years. It was the original collection place for the water for the city. All the water from the surrounding hills was channel for use by the town. The second stop was at a museum for one of the followers of Muhammad. It was actually a small mosque still in use. The tour guide took the opportunities today to go into detailed explanations of the Koran and all that it entails. It was more of a lecture on the subject than explaining what we saw. It was a bit too much info for people. The third stop was at the largest mosque in the area. Having been to a much larger one in Istanbul a few years ago, the layout within the walls was very similar. The most interesting thing about the building is that the materials were taken from older buildings.

2 blocks had Latin writing (the block was upside down!) but clearly came from the same area that we visited yesterday. Some of the columns were also taken and reused so that if they were the wrong height they were made to fit. Many of the columns had different non Arabic writings and 2 even had small crosses on them. They were taken from Christian churches. Most of the crosses had been removed. The prayer room itself was interesting in that there were support pillars throughout the room, something we had not seen before.

Of course only men are allowed inside the main area. Women gather on the edges to pray. After that we headed to our Hotel the Marhaba Palace where we are going to stay for 4 nights. As we were leaving the mosque, the bus starting beeping about the rear door being opened. It would not close (?) It seemed ok but the sensor had been tripped. So the afternoon activity was rescheduled for tomorrow. The sandy beach is very nice. We will be having a Remembrance Day service in the morning. The day was scheduled as a free day at leisure so everything will fit in. This hotel is right on the ocean and is very beautiful. It is classed as a resort! The dining area has an extensive buffet. There are almost too many choices. The hotel paid for wine tonight (probably because of the foul up when we tried to check in). They kept filling the glasses! Needless to say some people lingered after dinner!

Day 9 Sbeitlia and Kairouan

Another day of leaving at 7 am! Today we made our way north from the fringes of the Sahara back to the more prosperous part of Tunisia. The landscape changed quite quickly from barren or scrub scrubvegetation to farms of olive trees. After about 3 hours we finally were at our main stop of the day was a city called Sbeitlia.

The destination in this small town was the site of a Roman City that had a population of around 10,000. It was built for retired Roman army personnel (a retirement community). Without a doubt the site was probably the best Roman ruins that we have seen. The area is only partially excavated but was massive in size. The detail of the ruins can't really be described. We have been to Pompey and Herculaneum near Naples and although the ruins are more detailed, they don't compare to the size of this place. If a soldier or a gladiator served the required number of years (25 and 15?) they retired here. The site was at a crossroads for trade in the area. It was also situated so that the Romans could control the Berber tribes from the south It spanned eons. There were 2 christian churches reconstructed complete with a priest houses and a baptistery. Large public and private baths, temples, wide roads, etc. Were on display. It would take years of work to reveal the entire site including a large amphitheatre that is still covered by sod. Truly an amazing site. Lunch and then a short ride later we were at our hotel which was an old fortress and a jail complete with the original prisoner cells. We did a walk through a very large Medina and were taken to a restored house which held the government certified carpet dealer.

After a short tour of the rooms, we sat through a demonstration of the carpets they had for sale starting with the most expensive ones working the way down in quality and price. Nobody purchased a carpet despite the hard sell. They were very good quality carpets. The most interesting thing was the sunset from the top of the building.

Dinner was an excellent buffet. Afterwards we were then treated to sweet mint tea and a chance to try a hookah. There were 3 flavours but I think that would have to be an acquired taste! The hotel is very modern and probably the best one we have stayed in on this trip. We move tomorrow to our next place and get to stay for 4 days in what they is an ocean resort. That will be a nice change!

Day 8 Chott el Jerid to Tozeur

7 am leaving comes early! The first part of the day was our time to see the Atlas mountains up close. It has been the site of the filming of 2 well known movies Star Wars and The English Patience. Groups of 4 boarded our jeeps – really land rovers. That was our transportation for the next 6.5 hours. 10 “jeeps” in all set out in convoy fashion for the long drive. Our driver spoke a bit of French and no English that we could understand.

It was an education in Tunisian “outback?” driving. I was in the front seat picking up clues. There were these red signs at main crossroads which I think the driver understood to be go fast through the intersection before someone from the other direction does the same. The white line dividing lanes I think means having the midpoint of the car aligned along it. Occasionally he would move a bit to the right. There were signs like camel crossing. We did see a number of camels in the desert during the day that seemed to be lost with no one around. Then we had to stop for a heard of goats crossing. What they could find to eat is a mystery. After driving for about an hour through an absolute desolate landscape we turned and were surrounded by green palm trees. The change to the oasis needs to be experienced. It was a true oasis!

That first stop included a walk on a short trail to a higher location and experience what an oasis is like in real life from a higher elevation. Seeing the stream emerge from the rock and feeds the palm trees that the people tend in an absolutely dry environment was educational. I think the real living is made from the tourists. Of course no matter where you looked there were vendors selling their wares. There were tables of desert roses rocks and multi coloured geodes, scarves, fossils etc. Seems that every turn had a duplicate stand, even up the mountain. The Atlas mountains are not the same as in Canada.

The second stop was at a waterfall. It was not of great height but it was fed by another spring. It had a pretty steady flow. Of course more shops! The caravan headed back towards Tozeur with a few more stops. From a pass we could see Algeria a few miles away. We have seen guards at some of the crossings. They did not stop the rovers but they were carrying rifles. Then a sharp turn and we were crossing a “salt lake” on no defined road! The rovers were driving all over the place but generally in the same direction. We passed one broken down structure used in some film and then stopped at the site for the filming of the English patience. There was not much there.

The final stop was at the site of the Tataouine village in Star Wars as well as scenes from Mos Espa in the later movies. We visited the Lars Homestead the other day. Fake building build with chicken wire (?) and plaster. Very realistic looking until you looked inside the building and could see everything is propped up by wooden beams. Tunisia is currently refurbishing the site as it is a big attraction.

After the awful ride in on the “non” roads over the salt plain, the driver took us over some high dunes (think attraction park rides) but then hit the newly paved road back to Tozeur. That ended the morning portion of the day.

After lunch (we barely made it back in time) we had some free time before heading out for dinner at the Eden Palm of either lamb or camel was to be served during the folkloric show. Mostly music with a bit of dancing tossed in.